Hope it's not too late to respond to this thread, fwiw here are my responses:

PATTON wrote:
> I would like to start a thread, initially directed to our more experienced
> players, but intended for our younger players.
> I know that many of us have had excellent experiences playing music, but I
> would like to constrict the replies, in order to focus on one angle.
> Requirements, please respond if you have been playing trumpet(jazz idiom)
> for over 20 years.

Hate to admit it, but yes...

> What is the best moment you have experienced while playing Jazz?

Probably soloing in front of the WRCQ Big Band to a packed house at the Bushnell Auditorium in Hartford, Conecticut....The Band was hot, I'd just done *La Virgen de la Macarena* as an opener,
then a ballad, then played *Doc's Holiday*(written for Doc Severinsen) and it was a real trip....

> What is the best moment you have had listening to jazz?

No contest: Dizzy's last performance in Boston, about a year before we lost him....He was playing in a carpetted ballroom, and did *Round Midnight* "for the cats that've gone before..." and you could have heard a mouse whisker drop on that carpet in between the notes he played.... Talk about *AWESOME*(and then we finished the night listening to Arturo Sandoval in the nightclub next door--WOW!)

> In your opinion, Can the two, legit and jazz, be sought after at the same time?

I think so, since the basic skills are pretty universal....What winds up being a jumping off point is the pursuit of a particular type of sound--Do you want to sound orchestral(pretty universal standard), or have a unique sound of your own(more prevalent in jazz and solo playing)?  That becomes a point when many choose to specialize, though there are those who manage to play both sides of the fence well....

> By this I refer to the statement," One can be a good legit player and
> a good jazz player at the same time, but to truely become a pinnacle of one
> expression or the other, one must decide which is to be sacrificed."

No, I think I disagree on this one:  it's other parts of your life that wind up being sacrificed if you want to excel at both...

> When as a younger player did you finally decide that jazz music was going
> to be so important in your life.

Hmmmm....Either the day I met Harry James in person, or the first night I played a professional dance band gig(at the tender age of 14!), both were exhilarating experiences for me....

> How does the statement,"It pays the bills" influence what, when and why you
> play jazz?

It used to be a lot bigger part of my life, but I'm older and more secure now, and my health demands that I turn down club-dates in places that allow cigarette smoking.....
>
> Music is a giant part of my life, it has dictated where I live and how. It
> has brought me rewards immeasurable, and tragedy. Many of our readers
> consider their future in music daily. And I hope that we can shed some
> light by answering these questions.
>
> Thanks
> John Patton in Juneau